Naruto Holidays
by FreeJayFly
Summary: Read how the Naruto gang celebrate their holidays when they're with each other! [OOCness] NaruHina SasuSaku ShikaIno [just one chapter and they're only doing whatever as FRIENDS!] ShikaTema NejiTen KakaAnko KankuIno
1. Chapter 1

Hey all, just a new Naruto fanfic… hope ya'll don't mind… BTW, this FF has no OCs whatsoever… yet anyways… and is going to be going over the Holidays that I find important to celebrate… which is… a lot. New Years, Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, Easter, July Fourth, Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas… remind me of any I forgot by PMing me. Also the Naruto couples included in here are: NaruHina; SasuSaku; ShikaIno; and TenNeji. Just to reassure you, I'm not a big fan of ShikaIno, I like ShikaTema more, though Temari is celebrating New Years in Suna with her family, Gaara and Kankurou XD

You know… it's almost Halloween… and I told my dad that I was going to be Kiba… so I showed him a picture of him and my dad was like, "You're going to be a guy with bitch-slap marks on his face?" I started laughing my ass off. My sister… Hell to Haters, is going to be Hinata. No Kiba Hina when we're together! She's going to be with one of her guy friends that's going to be Naruto and my friend, Shades (nickname) is going to be Shino.

Anyways… for this chapter… I strongly, strongly, STRONGLY suggest that you listen to the song _'My Best Friend'_ by Weezer. It's a sweet song and it really explains kinda what goes on in this story. Well… either that song or _'You Make Me Smile' _by Blue October for this chapter as well. Thanks.

**Chapter One **

**Happy New Years **

Naruto, Chouji, Kiba and Lee were walking down the cobbled pathways of Konoha, their arms filled with white boxes that were filled with colorful ornaments and decorations. Sakura, Ino and Tenten were in the front, directing the boys where to put the old decorations so that they could use them for the next Christmas that came around.

"C'mon, Sakura-chan… are we almost there yet?" Naruto whined, the boxes steadily growing heavier and heavier. Naruto's arms were shaking with the increasing weight and was anxious to get the boxes out of his hands.

"Hey, you're the one who volunteered to do this, Naruto." Sakura scoffed, placing her hands on her hips and continuing to walk ahead. Tenten looked back to see Chouji veering to the left, she ran back towards him and straightened him towards the path that he was supposed to be walking.

"Ne, Naruto? You're giving up that easily? Jeeze, you're so lame…" Kiba panted, himself also getting tired of holding onto the boxes. Lee was the only one that was enjoying all of this.

"C'mon! With attitudes like that, you'll never get this finished, see this as training! The Springtime of Youth lives on!" Lee cheered, smiling while holding all the boxes above his head and continuing to follow the girls' with a smile on his face. The group neared the Hokage's building and walked in, Tenten and Ino ushered the boys in. Sakura walked ahead and up the stairs, looking for the storage room.

"Hey, over here!" Sakura called down to the others, waving her hand to show them where at. All the boys except for Lee, were staggering up the stairs, cautiously putting their foot on the next step they came to. Sakura smiled and opened the door, pulling out another box labeled, 'Fireworks.'

The boys made it to the top of the stairs, Ino and Tenten following after them. The two girls walked up to Sakura and looked inside the storage room. Tenten walked in and called out, "Okay, Chouji, you first! Put the box you have over here!" Chouji walked towards Tenten's voice and placed the box gingerly on the floor so that he didn't break the contents. Ino and Sakura motioned for the others to come in as well; Kiba, Naruto and Lee.

After a few minutes, they finally finished what they had to do and Sakura clasped her hands together joyously then started jumping up and down. She looked over to the group that helped and told them all, "well, now we can get ready for New Years!" she was giddy. Sakura picked up the fireworks box and handed it to Lee. Naruto smiled and thought happily about that night.

"Man! This New Year's is going to be a good one!" Kiba shouted, throwing his fist into the air and smiling. Naruto nodded and agreed, "yeah, tonight before the party begins, I'm going to spend time with Hinata-chan!" Sakura looked up at Naruto as he said that.

"Hinata? But I thought…" Sakura started, looking up at the ceiling and starting to think. Naruto smiled big and put his arms behind his head and replied, "nope! After spending some time with Hinata-chan… I finally realized that she isn't the person I thought she was!" Sakura looked back at Naruto and smiled, "that's good for you, Naruto!"

**Inner Sakura**

"_Shanaroo! Finally! I can be with my Sasuke-kun and not be disturbed by this annoying pest!"_

Naruto smiled and dashed forward, his thoughts soaring and bounding with each thought of Hinata that past through his mind. Kiba shoved his hands into his pockets and looked after Naruto, sighing. Chouji pulled out a bag of barbeque potato chips and started snacking away at the crispy snacks.

"Since when did he and Hinata start hanging out together on a daily basis?" Ino asked, looking at Sakura and smirking to herself. Sakura turned towards Ino with a sheepish smile on her face and admitted, "honestly… I don't quite know myself…"

"I'm off! I'll see you guys later tonight at the party!" Kiba called out at the others. Akamaru jumped out of his owners jacket and both he and Kiba took off down the stairs back outside. Lee looked at the girls then to Chouji, he shifted the box so that it was more comfortable to hold then walked downstairs carefully, not wanting to miss a step. He stopped at the center step then looked back up at the others with a smile.

"I'll be putting these where they belong so that we can use them tonight!" Lee told Tenten, Ino and Sakura. Chouji still stuffed his face with handfuls of potato chips and looked up at the girls, wondering what they will do next. Sakura turned towards Tenten and Ino and winked at them, "I supposed we should get ready for tonight?" Chouji stood up and crumpled the empty potato chip bag in his hands. He and the three other girls made their way down the stairs and back into Konohagakure.

**Naruto**

Naruto neared the Hyuuga mansion and walked through the gates, staring at the enormous house. He walked towards it, feeling somewhat intimidated by the massive size of the house.

"W-wow… such a big place…" Naruto stuttered to himself, reaching up to knock on the wooden part of the paper door. Naruto's fist hit the wood three times and he stepped back a bit, waiting for someone to answer. Naruto looked up at the door at it slid open slowly, it was Hyuuga Neji.

"N-Neji…" Naruto stuttered in surprise, he didn't really expect Neji to be home at this time. The male Hyuuga looked at Naruto with his milky gaze and walked outside of his home, heading towards Tenten's place.

"Hinata… has been waiting for you…" was all Neji said before he disappeared behind the stone wall. Naruto stood there, stunned to what just happened. He gathered up his wits and went inside, feeling even more intimidated by the darkness and eeriness of the house.

"W-w-wow… Hinata lives here? I was thinking more of an elegant place instead of a creepy dark place…" Naruto said to himself, walking down the dark hallway. A fast pace set of footsteps neared Naruto and he turned around to be looking at Hinata running towards him in a navy colored kimono with white and lilac flowers on it. Her obi around her waist was a white color with purple and blue lines running across it.

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata exclaimed, stopping in front of Naruto and smiling at him, "I've been waiting for you to come for a while… I-I didn't think you would…" Hinata told him, bringing her hand to her mouth.

"No, I always keep a promise, Hinata-chan! Just that I was helping Ino and Sakura move old Christmas decorations back to the storage area." Naruto truthfully told Hinata, holding out his arms for an embrace. Hinata raised her white gaze to meet Naruto's sapphire one, smiled and began to walk towards him, wrapping her arms around him.

"Heh he, Hinata-chan… are you ready for tonight?" Naruto asked Hinata, looking down at her. Hinata smiled and nodded, breaking away from Naruto and taking his hand, leading him out of the Hyuuga manor.

**Tenten**

Tenten waved to Ino, Sakura and Chouji and entered her house, greeting both her mother and her father. She ran upstairs, went into her room and took her purple kimono from her wardrobe then took her hair out from their buns. Her long, wavy brown hair fell down over her shoulders and along her back. Tenten looked into her mirror and winked to herself.

"Tonight is going to be a fun night!" Tenten reassured herself, walking towards her window and watching the villagers of Konoha setting up booths and concession stands for the New Years party. Tenten drew her curtains and began to change into her kimono, first wrapping her white cloth over chest, then pulling the silken garment over her body and last tying the pink obi around her waist. She looked back into her mirror and started to braid her hair, being careful not to have them uneven.

"Tenten!" her mother called up, getting her attention. Tenten looked away from her mirror and walked towards her room door, opening it slightly.

"What is it, Kaa-san?" Tenten asked, still not ready to come downstairs due to not being ready for the New Year's festival.

"Neji's here to see you!" her mother called up to Tenten. The girl blushed and smiled, peeking her head out of her door and calling back down, "I'll be down in a few… I'm not ready yet!" Tenten closed her door and tied her hair up in braided loops hanging from the sides of her head like pigtails. Tenten hurried away from the mirror, put on her reed zori and slung her silk, dark purple kinchaku on her arm. Tenten walked out of her room and down the stairs to see Neji.

"Konnichiwa, Neji!" Tenten greeted, placing her hand on the rail and walking down the rest of the stairs gracefully. Neji smiled up at both his teammate and most cared for person. He thought she looked marvelous for the New Year's festival and held out his hand for her to take as she reached the bottom step. Tenten giggled and took it, being led out of her house by the Hyuuga.

**Sasuke**

The Uchiha sat on the campus bench fiddling with his fingers to past the time away. Sakura had told him to meet her there, though she was a tad late and he didn't know what to do. Sasuke looked up and around himself seeing if anyone was coming. No one just yet, though he raised his head and looked to the left of him as he head the clopping of traditional geta nearing towards him.

Sakura had her hair done up with hair sticks and small ornaments. Her kimono was a maroon color with pink and while sakura petals decorated on it. The obi that was tied around her waist was a sunset pink color, though had the white Haruno crest on it. Sakura also had a maroon, pink and white uchiwa concealing some of her face, though not her radiant green eyes.

Sasuke's mouth drooped open a bit though he quickly shut it when he realized what he was doing. He picked himself up from the bench and walked over towards Sakura with a warm smile on his face. He was too embarrassed to tell her that she looked brilliant in the outfit that she was wearing. In fact… he was too embarrassed to say anything, he thought that Sakura looked lovely in the traditional wear that she had on.

"Is something wrong, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked, lowering the uchiwa away from her face and looking up into Sasuke's onyx gaze. Sasuke snapped out of his trance and looked at Sakura and shook his head.

"E-everything's just perfect…" Sasuke quietly told Sakura, holding out his hand for Sakura to take. The pink haired girl smiled and took it, feeling extremely happy that Sasuke had accepted to go with her to the New Year's festival. A thought then raced through her head as she remembered Ino.

"I wonder… who Ino will be going with tonight…" Sakura wondered out loud. She knew that Shikamaru was currently seeing Temari, and that Ino liked Sasuke probably as much as she, herself did. Sasuke looked over then smiled a bit.

"She asked me… but then I told her that I was going with you… she then said that her only two options were Shino and Kiba." Sasuke told Sakura, trying to make her cheer up about Ino. A thought entered Sasuke's mind and he decided to pitch it to Sakura, "well… you could always ask her… to come with us…"

Sakura looked up at Sasuke quizzically and replied, "take her with us? You wouldn't mind?" Sasuke's face hardened for a split second and it returned to it's natural state and he shook his head.

"Mainly because we're probably going to be with a group anyways…" Sasuke told Sakura, thinking of Naruto and Hinata. Sakura looked ahead and smiled, "yeah… we'll just be together like that, well, then I guess we should go over to Ino's place…"

**Kiba**

"Mom, Hana! I don't need to be dressed up in traditional wear for this event…" Kiba complained, folding his arms over his chest and closing his eyes irritably. His sister, Hana, was washing his jacket and his mom, Tsume, was giving Akamaru a bath.

"It would be better if you were though!" Hana protested, looking up from washing Kiba's jacket. Tsume took Akamaru out of the bath and dried him up in a towel, handing the small dog to Kiba. The youngest of the Inuzuka Clan took Akamaru from his mother and continued to softly dry Akamaru from his dampened state.

"It's only the girls that are dressing up for this…" Kiba replied, taking Akamaru out of the towel only to have the small dog shake the rest of the water off and all over Kiba. He took the towel and wiped his face, smearing the Inuzuka Fang crest on his cheeks. Hana held in her laughter as she cleaned the rest marks off of Kiba's face and painted new ones on.

"Fine… but take a shower.." Tsume told him, not noticing that Kiba had just gotten his markings put back on by Hana. Both he and Hana sighed and Kiba slid the chair he was sitting on out from under the table. Akamaru jumped from the table and followed after him, stopping to sit and lay down in front of the bathroom door. Kiba shuffled in and undressed, turning on the water and stepping into the shower.

"Kiba…" came a familiar voice, Kiba looked up to the wooden window above his bath to see Shino and instantly Kiba pulled a towel from the rack and put it around his waist defensively.

"What do you want?" Kiba growled, a little angry that Shino just decided to show up with no warning at all. Shino looked down at Kiba and adjusted his dark glasses.

"Naruto… and Hinata are waiting for you outside your gates…" Shino notified Kiba, turning and looking towards his other teammate and someone he considered an annoyance. Kiba's eyebrow twitched and he looked at Shino with an annoyed look plastered on his face.

"Then why are you here?" Kiba asked, looking at Shino through the wooden bars. Shino turned his attention back towards Kiba and disappeared, leaving Kiba's question unanswered. Kiba turned back towards the shower and cleaned up his appearance, still feeling annoyed that Shino popped out of no where. The Inuzuka poured a fair amount of shampoo in his hands and rinsed his hair, thinking about the festival tonight. He was looking forward to it, sure he didn't have a date, though being with his childhood friends was good enough for him. He closed his eyes and a smile came across Kiba's face as he lifted his face towards the falling water.

'_Naruto… Shikamaru… Chouji…'_ Kiba thought, opening his eyes and turning the knob to the shower in the 'OFF' direction. He stepped out of the shower and dried himself off, the same smile on his face from thinking about the old days he used to spend with Naruto, Shikamaru and Chouji. He and Naruto would always find a way to sneak out of class, he and Shikamaru would always doze off during Iruka's lessons and he and Chouji would share potato chips with one another.

Kiba pulled the gray bathrobe from the hook beside the sink and slipped it on, opening the door to the bathroom and walking towards his room with Akamaru awakening and following after him. Kiba opened his room door and walked in, pulling the recently washed and dried jacket off of his bed and putting it on.

"Oi, Kiba!" Naruto had opened the window in his room and poked his head with a wide smile on his face. Kiba's eyebrow twitched and he shoved Naruto back out of his window.

"Dammit! Doesn't anybody here in this village have any consideration to someone else while they're trying to get ready!?" Kiba yelled, slamming his window closed and dragging his curtains over the glass. Kiba pulled on his boxers and then his dark brown pants, finally ready to be going to the festival. The Inuzuka walked towards his door then remembered something… the Inuzuka Fang crest markings. He looked back towards the mirror and waved his hand as in 'forget-it-one-day-won't-hurt.'

He and Akamaru dashed out of the room and down the halls of the house, and outside to meet Naruto, Hinata and Shino.

"Oi… Kiba… you don't have your markings today?" Naruto asked, noticing that the Inuzuka Crest wasn't on his cheeks. Kiba smiled and replied, "nah, one day won't hurt."

**Shikamaru**

"Tch… Temari's staying in Suna for the New Years…" Shikamaru sighed, laying down on the bench on top of the roof that he has hung out at ever since he was young. Shikamaru stared up at the clouds and closed his eyes, thinking about Temari. She said that it was important to stay with old friends and family members on New Years and Shikamaru finally bode her farewell as she made her trip back to the Country of Wind.

Shikamaru sat back up and took one last longing gaze at the clouds that drifted by slowly then got up from the bench he was sitting at. He was thinking of Ino and asking her if she wanted to go with him or not, he knew it was last second, but he didn't want to stay home for New Years and he didn't really want to go to the festival without someone. He walked away from his spot and headed down the stairs with his hands stuffed in his pockets.

"I guess… Ino is the only one choice… she can't go with Sasuke because Sakura had already asked him first." Shikamaru muttered to himself. He saw a light blond haired girl in a dark blue kimono with jade butterflies decorated across it, walking slowly with her head bent down towards the ground. Shikamaru walked up to her.

"I-Ino…" Shikamaru stuttered, looking down at the Yamanaka. Ino looked up at Shikamaru and smiled slightly then looked back at the ground in a sullen state.

"I-is something wrong, Ino?" Shikamaru asked, walking alongside his teammate. Ino shook her head though kept her gaze locked onto the cobbled pathway below her. Shikamaru looked ahead of him then back at Ino.

"C'mon… it's New Year's Eve, Ino… you're supposed to be happy!" Shikamaru tried to cheer up Ino by smiling as he said that sentence to her. Ino looked back up at Shikamaru with a new sense of burning determination in her eyes.

"You're right! Just because Sakura is with Sasuke doesn't mean that this night is going to be a bad one!" Ino yelled, jabbing her finger to the front of her. Shikamaru sighed then smiled, raising his arms and then resting them behind his head. He looked back down at Ino and noticed that there was a jade hairclip with small blue orchids on it holding her bun in place. He also noticed the small details of white tear-drop shapes lining her kimono sleeves.

"Hey Ino…" Shikamaru started, looking up at the clouds once more. Ino looked up at her teammate and replied, "what is it?" Shikamaru shoved his hands into his pockets and told her, "you look really great in that outfit…" Ino blushed and looked back down at the ground.

"Thank you…" Ino told Shikamaru, placing her hands together and entwining her fingers together. She looked back up to see Sakura and Sasuke walking towards them. Both Ino and Shikamaru raised their hands to wave at the duo.

"Shikamaru… but I thought you'd be going with Temari…" Sakura told Shikamaru as she and Sasuke neared Ino. Shikamaru smiled slightly then replied, "Temari's staying in Suna for the New Years… to be with her brothers, Gaara and Kankurou, and to spend some tome with her other friends."

"So that's why you're not with her right now…" Sakura said, raising her uchiwa and kind of fanning herself off with it. Shikamaru nodded and looked over at Ino with a smile on his face.

"Ino's my friend, which is why I'm going with her to the festival." Shikamaru told Sasuke and Sakura. The Uchiha stayed silent and Sakura smiled, feeling happy for Ino now that she had someone to go with to the festival.

Ino smiled up at Shikamaru then looked at Sasuke and Sakura. She dug into her blue kinchaku and pulled out an uchiwa very similar to Sakura's though was a dark blue at the bottom and became lighter and lighter till it was white at the top.

"Well… I guess we wait for the rest of the vendors to put up the paper lights before we begin at the festival." Ino smiled looking up at her friends then starting to walk towards the center of Konoha.

**Lee**

Lee was on top of the Hokage monument and was looking around to see if everything was alright. He smiled to himself and began working on the fireworks, picking up the box again.

"I hope this year's New Year is going to be better than last year…" Lee set down the fireworks box and began to get everything ready, setting out the fireworks and planning which ones were to be shot out first then finally for the grand finale. Lee turned around when he heard the familiar sound of a potato chips bag being opened.

"Hey Lee… I was just wondering if you needed any help with this…" Chouji explained, grabbing a handful of chips and stuffing them into his mouth. Lee smiled and nodded, "yeah, there are a lot of fireworks here… though this is excellent training!" Lee placed more fireworks out in a row. Chouji looked into the box of fireworks and pulled out some more, hading them off to Lee and setting up some others along where he thought they would go great at. They both set up the fireworks from where the various ANBU members were going to set them off. Lee clapped his hands together and Chouji brushed his hands on his pant legs.

"Well, we're done for now. We should go and join the others." Lee suggested, looking from the Hokage monument down to all of Konoha. Chouji nodded and stuffed his mouth again with potato chips and followed after Lee as he started walking.

"I've gotta meet Shikamaru over at Ino's… that's where he said he would be." Chouji told Lee, eating more of the potato chips that he had left. Lee walked down the rest of the steps with Chouji at his side, eating his potato chips.

"I understand… I also have to meet Neji and Tenten." Lee replied to Chouji, looking out to Konoha as he walked down stairs. Everybody was getting ready and now they had to for the big New Years night. The boys both smiled to themselves as they thought of what would be going on in Konoha. They'd actually have time off of missions to actually spend time with their best friends and teammates without having to risk their lives in combat.

**Ichiraku's Ramen**

Naruto, Hinata, Shino and Kiba sat in the Ichiraku Ramen shop before dusk fell. They were just sitting in there to pass time away. It was rare for Naruto not to order any ramen, truth be told though, he was too excited about tonight that he wasn't really hungry… not even for ramen.

Naruto was talking with Hinata with a big smile plastered on his face. Hinata was laughing at some of the things that Naruto brought up. Kiba seemed to be bored, leaning on the table with his head resting in the palm of his hand. Shino was staying silent with his hands clasped together and his eyes fixated no where in particular on the counter top that he sat at.

"Are you guys going to order or sit here all day?" Ichiraku asked, looking down at Naruto and the group he was at. Naruto patted his stomach and replied, "sorry Old Man, but I had a lot of ramen this morning… and we're all waiting for the festival to start!" Naruto also held up his wallet, "also… Gama-chan is flat…" Both Ichiraku and Ayame laughed at Naruto as he put his wallet back into his pocket.

Kiba got up from his seat and poked his head from the hanging curtains over the shop to see if the festival was about to start. The paper lanterns were still getting hanged and most of the shops were beginning to open. Kiba sat down at his seat and looked over at Naruto, Hinata and Shino.

"It's almost time." Kiba told them, a smirk on his face. He was doing his best to conceal the excitement from him though failed miserably everytime he talked. Shino got up from his seat and stuffed his hands into his pockets, still staying silent.

"Naruto-kun, we finally get to spend New Year's together!" Hinata exclaimed, smiling at Naruto. The blond-haired ninja got up from his seat and held out his hand to Hinata. The Hyuuga took it and Naruto helped her from her seat. She and Naruto walked out of Ichiraku's Ramen followed by Shino and Kiba. They all wandered the cobbled pathways that were now lined with shops and vendors.

The sky above was darkening with each passing minute and the multi-colored paper lanterns lit up, illuminating the pathways. Naruto, Hinata, Kiba and Shino passed the Yamanaka Floral shop and saw Ino, Shikamaru, Sakura and Sasuke standing in front, obviously waiting for something or someone. Sakura looked up at Naruto and the others, waving at them and smiling.

"Naruto, over here!" Sakura called out to them, motioning for them to come over. Naruto returned the smile and turned towards them, nearing them. Shikamaru sighed and lazily put his hands into his pockets. Ino smiled up at the group and looked back out to the rest of Konoha, admiring the lights and what was going on. Sasuke just turned his head to the side, not really caring what happened.

"You really did go to see Hinata!" Sakura exclaimed, watching Hinata wrap her arms around Naruto's right arm and latching onto him. Naruto laughed and replied, "you should know me by now, Sakura! I keep my promises!" Hinata laughed and nodded, agreeing with Naruto. That's when Kiba laughed, "during our free time, me and Shino were wondering why Hinata was always bailing on us!"

"Actually… I already knew…" Shino replied, killing Kiba's laughter and mood. Kiba glared at Shino and hotly replied, "so you neglected to even tell me!?" Shino stayed silent then finally answered, "the problem is already over… quit overreacting…" Kiba clenched his fist and gritted his teeth, holding back. Naruto, Hinata and Sakura found what was going on to actually be amusing to them. Sakura turned to Naruto and remembered something.

"Have you seen Tenten, Neji or Lee yet?" Sakura asked, looking up to the Hokage's building. Naruto looked up in thought then replied, "I saw Neji while picking up Hinata today… he was headed in the direction in which Tenten lives… so they might be together when we see them… and the last time I saw Lee was when I left you guys today after helping out."

"Oh…" Sakura sighed, looking up at Sasuke, seeing if he was in need of at least something… which he wasn't. Naruto looked down at Hinata and smiled.

"Why do I feel invisible?" Kiba muttered to himself, stuffing his hands into his pockets and staring up into the darkening sky and the stars that started to speckle the sky. Shino ignored his self-question and looked down the street, spotting Chouji coming down towards them.

"Chouji is here…" Shino notified everyone, adjusting his glasses. Naruto looked at Shino and pointed at him, "aren't you going to take off your glasses? It's getting dark…" Shino snapped his attention to Naruto and narrowed his eyes at him.

"Do you have a problem with me wearing them?" Shino stiffly asked, his gaze boring down on Naruto. The blond flinched and staggered back a little, feeling intimidated by the Aburame.

"N-not really…" Naruto replied, _'man, I REALLY don't get along with him…'_ he thought, looking back at Hinata and putting his arm around her shoulders.

"Hey Chouji, you're late!" Ino scolded placing her hands on her hips and looking at Chouji. Chouji looked to the ground and muttered, "sorry, I was helping Lee with the fireworks." Ino sighed and smiled, "what does it matter? You're here, that's what matters!" Chouji smiled up at her and agreed.

**Veranda**

Neji and Tenten stood at the Veranda together, waiting for Lee to hurry and meet them. While they were waiting, Tenten was leaning on the railing and admiring the lights that emitted from the lanterns. Neji was leaning on a pillar with his arms folded across his chest and his eyes closed.

"Hey Neji…" Tenten started, looking away from Konoha and turning her attention to the male Hyuuga. Neji looked up at Tenten to let her know that he heard her and replied, "what is it?" he asked, unfolding his arms and placing them at his side. Tenten smiled and walked over to his side, placing her hand in his.

"How do you think tonight is going to be?" she asked, her brown eyes looking into Neji's white ones. He stayed silent for a few seconds then his mouth cracked into a smile. He looked down at Tenten and replied, "I think it's going to be a good one…" Neji then dropped his voice to a whisper and continued, "especially if we're like this." Tenten blushed as Neji said that to her.

Tenten started to lean towards Neji with her mouth slightly parted. Neji cupped her face in his hands and stared to lean in as well, getting into the mood. Tenten wrapped her arms around Neji and planted her lips onto his, feeling extraordinarily happy and caught up in the moment.

"Neji! Tenten! Sorry I'm late!" came Lee's voice as he was running up the stairs to meet them. Tenten and Neji broke away before Lee saw and turned their attention towards their teammate, breaking all intimate contact. Lee smiled up at his two teammates as he walked through the archway to the veranda.

"Now that we're all here… we should go and meet up with Naruto and the others…" Tenten suggested, putting her hands behind her back and smiling at Lee and Neji. The Hyuuga nodded and Lee replied, "yeah, Chouji told me that he saw them all at Ino's family shop." Lee started back down from the veranda and Neji took Tenten's hand. The girl looked over at the Hyuuga and smiled, being led to the stairwell by him.

Lee was ahead of his two teammates while Tenten and Neji were holding hands and giving each other warm smiles. The team reached the bottom of the stairs and made their way to the Yamanaka Floral shop, not really saying a word to each other.

Ino looked up from talking to Shikamaru and waved to Tenten, Neji and Lee, motioning for them to come over to the group that was waiting for them. Naruto smiled as they approached and Hinata hugged onto his arm again. Tenten looked over at Kiba and didn't recognize him because he was wearing a different jacket and he didn't have the Inuzuka Fang crest markings on his face.

"Kiba, is that you?" she asked, pointing a finger at him. Kiba furrowed his brow and crossed his arms then replied, "no, I'm just another young Inuzuka male that neglected to put his markings on and has a dog that looks just and is named Akamaru… of course it's me!" Tenten laughed and looked over at Neji who had a slight smile cracked on his lips.

The sky was officially dark and the cobbled pathways of Konoha were now lit with colorful paper lanterns and vendor shop lights. The pathways were also filled with Konoha residents enjoying the night and starting to bring in the new year.

"Well, it's time to get started to celebrate New Year's Eve…" Sakura told everyone, reaching down and holding onto Sasuke's hand. The Uchiha didn't seem to mind, cos he closed his hand around Sakura's and entwined his fingers with hers. Naruto nodded and agreed, wrapping one of his arms around Hinata.

"What time is it? I mean… before we split, that way we can comeback so we don't miss the show." Kiba asked, looking around at everyone. Shikamaru looked over at the clock inside Ino's family shop and it read; eight fifty-seven.

"We have about three hours to do all the things we want to do before the New Year is finally here." Shikamaru replied, looking down at Ino and starting to walk down one of the paths, Ino following him shortly after.

"Well, Hinata-chan and I will meet you guys up over here when we are done." Naruto told the others that were remaining. He and Hinata left towards the vendors that were closest to the Hokage's building.

"Hey wait, I thought we were going to do this as a group…" Tenten stated, looking at who remained there; Kiba, Shino, Sakura, Sasuke, Chouji, Neji and Lee. Sakura laughed and fanned herself with the uchiwa that she had.

"It's tonight that we're staying as a group… when the night show begins." Sakura replied, a smile on her lips. Sasuke looked over in the other direction then looked over to Sakura, "hey, are we going, or what?" he asked, not wanting to be in a big group. Sakura looked up at him and smiled, her way of tell him 'yes.' The two walked off, hand-in-hand.

Akamaru whined up at Kiba from the inside of his jacket and the Inuzuka male looked down at him, "yeah, I know… we'll get moving pretty soon Akamaru." Kiba assured his companion, patting the small dog's head. Kiba looked over at Shino then to the others, "well, I guess I'll meet you here when the New Year's a few minutes away." Akamaru jumped out of Kiba's jacket and they both ran down a pathway, a canine smile on Akamaru's face and a joyous one on Kiba's. Shino looked after them and stuffed his hands into his pockets, starting to stalk off somewhere.

Lee looked over at his teammates, Neji and Tenten. He also noticed how close they were in the moments that he saw them. Lee hung his head a bit and turned away from them, walking towards the academy campus and waving back at Tenten, Neji and Chouji.

"I'm going to see if I can hang out with Shikamaru and Ino because they're just here as friends." Chouji told the Hyuuga and Tenten. He walked where Ino and Shikamaru walked towards to, pulling another bag of potato chips out of his bag.

"Guess it's just you and me again…" Tenten told Neji, looking up at him and smiling. Neji lowered his milky gaze to Tenten's chocolate one and smiled down at her. He took her hand and laced his fingers with hers.

"To be honest… I really don't feel like being here in the streets…" Neji told Tenten, looking up at the veranda where they were before they were taken to meet the others. Tenten looked up at him and giggled, "I feel the same way…" The both of them started to walk back towards the veranda, Neji's arm around Tenten's waist and her head on the Hyuuga's shoulder.

**Hinata and Naruto**

Naruto and Hinata walked together, admiring the festival lights, sweet smells of candy and kids having a great time and playing games. A small geisha doll made of china sitting on a wooden shelf caught Naruto's eye and he looked down at it.

"Hey, you wanna play? If you win you get one of these beautifully, handmade geisha dolls!" the vendor offered to Naruto. He looked up at the vendor and thought, _'if I win one for Hinata, she'll be happy!'_ Naruto smiled and nodded, reaching into his pocket and giving the vendor fifty ryou for playing. Hinata stood by Naruto's side, watching him carefully. The vendor happily took the ryou and gave Naruto five small rings.

"Now all you have to do is ring two bottles over there, and you win!" the vendor explained, looking at Naruto with a warm smile on his face. Naruto nodded and looked down at the bottles, grasping the rings. He took a breath and tossed a ring, having it go around one of the necks of the bottles perfectly. Hinata smiled and encouraged Naruto some more.

"Naruto-kun, that was an excellent throw!" she told him, clasping her hands together and hoping Naruto would make another one. Naruto placed his hand to toss the next one. He took a breath and threw it, having it only dink against one of the rims and falling to the ground.

"Aww…" Naruto groaned, holding the other three rings, "I'll be sure to make the next one!" he tossed another one, this one doing the same as the last one. Hinata giggled and looked at Naruto.

"It's okay… you still have two shots…" she told him, Naruto smiled back at her and looked back at his targets. Again he took a breath and tossed a ring, _'c'mon… go around one of the bottles…'_ he thought to himself. The ring caught around the rim or the bottle and swung around falling around the neck. Naruto jumped up, throwing his fist into the air. The vendor laughed and looked at Hinata.

"Which one would you like?" he asked her, knowing that Naruto was playing the game to win for her. Hinata turned her attention to the vendor and looked at the large collection of china, geisha dolls. The one that he gaze lingered on had black hair with ornaments in it. It also had an elegant kimono in many colors and with butterfly and lily flower patterns on it. The vendor noticed and brought it down for her.

"Thanks a lot!" Naruto told the vendor, wrapping one of his arms around Hinata's shoulders. Hinata smiled and held the small geisha doll, cherishing it. She was glad that Naruto had won it for her.

**Sakura and Sasuke**

Sasuke and Sakura were back at the Ninja Academy campus sitting on the benches that they both usually hung out at. Sakura was wondering why Sasuke had led her back over here and didn't want to go to the festival and celebrate there. Sasuke sat on the campus bench and Sakura sat next to him, looking up at him.

"Sakura…" Sasuke started, not really knowing how to word his sentence. He was nervous around her, usually it was always Sakura following him around like a little love-struck puppy… now Sasuke was having trouble telling Sakura how he really felt about her.

"What is it, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked, leaning towards Sasuke, wondering what he was going to tell her. Sasuke looked down at her then swallowed, trying to push down his nervousness, _'what is wrong with me? I don't normally act like this!'_ Sasuke thought, clenching his fists and still trying to find away to tell Sakura that he liked her.

"I…" Sasuke started, biting his bottom lip. He took in a breath and exhaled, "I…" he paused and turned to face Sakura, then continued with what he was going to tell her, "I… actually… have liked you… Sakura…" he finally told her. Sakura looked up at Sasuke, surprised to what she was hearing, she was happy… very happy that Sasuke had finally told her this, but she honestly didn't know how to react.

"Well… you know… that I have liked you a lot…" Sakura replied, fiddling with her fingers, "but what girl doesn't?" she laughed nervously, she could only think of Tenten and Hinata as the only girls that haven't fallen head-over-heels for Sasuke. The Uchiha smiled and looked down at Sakura. Her bright, yet pleading green eyes made Sasuke feel differently in that moment in time and her turned towards Sakura, leaning towards her slowly and closing his eyes. He parted his lips and placed against Sakura's moist and smooth ones.

Sakura was surprised that Sasuke had made the first move on _her_! She closed her eyes and started to slowly wrap her arms around Sasuke, embracing and savoring every passing minute that she and Sasuke sat there like that. Sasuke reached up and gingerly placed his hands on Sakura's hips, allowing the warm sensation to course through his body.

The two finally broke away after what seemed like hours. Sakura smiled up at him and leaned her head on his shoulder, feeling very happy that she and Sasuke were finally alone together and both enjoying each other's presence.

**Shikamaru and Ino**

Shikamaru and Ino walked together, not really saying a word. Chouji finally caught up with them and smiled at the two of his teammates.

"Chouji, what are doing with us?" Shikamaru asked, looking at his best friend since childhood. Chouji simply smiled and replied, "well, I knew that Temari's in Suna and that you were going to be with Ino just as friends here, so I wanted to hang out with you two as friends." Shikamaru smiled and turned to Ino.

"You're okay with that, right?" he asked looking back from Ino to Chouji. Ino looked up at Shikamaru and her other teammate, then replied, "we're all friends, and we hang out on a daily basis, why would I not like to hang out with you two?" she giggled a bit and looked ahead, watching some small kids play with each other with fake ANBU masks on their faces.

Ino then looked up at the moon that was glowing brightly in the sky and sighed, feeling excited though sad at the same time. She never really had anyone go out with her and here she was hanging out with Shikamaru and Chouji formally. In that moment, she was actually envying Sakura and how she got to stay with Sasuke.

"Is something wrong… Ino?" Shikamaru asked, stuffing his hands into his pockets and looking over at his friend. Ino jerked her attention back to Shikamaru and smiled at him, "no, everything's really fine… just that I'm bored just walking around and doing nothing." Ino laughed, looking around her once more then back to Chouji and Shikamaru.

"Is that right?" Shikamaru asked, looking around as well then spotting a game stall, "how about that over there?" he asked, averting Ino's attention to what he was pointing at. Ino looked at the stall and noticed that the game was to throw little discs through sheets of paper held up by a wooden frame. Ino smiled and walked over towards it.

As they neared the stall, the vendor looked up and smiled at Shikamaru and Ino, "you two lovebirds here to play a game?" the vendor asked, smiling up at the Chuunin and the Genin. Ino's opened her mouth to say, "'lovebirds?' We're just friends!" she giggled a bit and looked at Shikamaru, who looked like he was blushing. Though Shikamaru's attention was diverted elsewhere.

"Just friends? Well, no matter, you two should still play, after all… the night is still young!" the vendor laughed, looking at Shikamaru. Ino giggled as well and looked up at Shikamaru as well, "what do you think? You're the one that called this to my attention!" she laughed, looking at the targets and the small, round discs.

"Well, if you really want to… Chouji's over there, getting something to eat… we should at least do something while waiting for him to come back over here." Shikamaru replied to Ino, shoving his hands into his pockets and pulling out fifty ryou and handing it to the vendor. The vendor smiled and handed both Ino and Shikamaru three discs each. Ino looked up at her teammate and picked up the first disc, inhaling then throwing the disc as she exhaled. The cream-colored disc tore through the paper marked fifty points.

"Yeah, look at that!" Ino cheered, bringing her fist up as she saw the disc go through the paper. Shikamaru smiled and picked up one of his discs and threw it at the separate targets, it grazed one of the wooden frame boxes, though still went through. The Nara male smiled sheepishly and watched Ino throw another disc clean through another target.

The vendor looked optimistic and smiled, "wow, you girl is really good at this!" she laughed, watching Ino throw the last disc she had and having sail right through another target. Shikamaru laughed and nodded, "though she's not 'my' girl… she's my friend." Shikamaru picked up the last two discs and threw them at the same time, hitting both targets he was aiming for, though they both still grazed the wooden frame. The vendor chuckled at the two ninjas, though raced back and pulled a small deer figure and a small boar figure and gave them to the Yamanaka and the Nara.

Shikamaru looked at the small figure that he had skeptically and laughed, "how ironic…" He put the small deer into his pocket and Ino put her little boar into her kinchaku. Chouji met back up with his two teammates with a bag full of food that he had just bought.

**Neji and Tenten**

The Hyuuga and Tenten made their way back up to the veranda, knowing that no one was following them. Tenten had her hand in Neji's and her head resting on his shoulder as they both walked silently back up the dark stairs to the veranda. Neither of them had really had the time just to hang out like this, that's why they always enjoyed the holidays.

Tenten and Neji both walked to the balcony and looked at the stars in each other's arms, happy to be there and happy to be celebrating the evening of a special night together. The both of them looked at the stars, admiring their beauty in the velvet night sky.

"Tonight is definitely going to be a good one…" Tenten whispered, her mouth still in a sight smile. She was happy to be with Neji for the night to bring in the new year. She also didn't really know what to do other than enjoy the night, hoping that the Hyuuga would make the first move on her instead of the other way around.

"That it is…" Neji replied to Tenten, looking down at her then cupping her face in his hands and staring into her brown eyes. Tenten could feel the heat of the blush working it's way across her face as she stared back at Neji. The Hyuuga leaned down and Tenten closed her eyes as Neji pressed his lips against hers. She wrapped her arms around Neji slowly as he did the same with her.

Both Neji and Tenten broke apart as they heard the whistling sound of something being shot up, then it exploded into a vibrant shower of blue and white. Tenten smiled more cheerfully and Neji wrapped his arms around her once more, smiling and staring into the sky as the fireworks shot off more and more.

"I think we should meet up with the others… only because we all agreed to watch the light show together." Neji smiled, looking down at Tenten. The black-haired girl smiled and nodded, wrapping one of her arms around Neji's waist and walking with him back down the stairs of the veranda and back to the Yamanaka floral shop.

"Heh, took you guys long enough! Let's go!" came the voice of the evermore exuberant Inuzuka Kiba. He was already running ahead with the little puppy, Akamaru by his side. Naruto couldn't agree more with his childhood friend, though took Hinata into consideration and didn't take off just like her teammate did.

"Heh… sorry to keep you guys waiting, didn't really keep track of the time." Tenten giggled, apologizing to all her friends. They too went in the direction that the Inuzuka ran off to followed by the others.

Naruto and Hinata were holding hands though also very close to one another, they were leaning their heads together and talking quietly to each other. Sasuke and Sakura were also very close, though the Uchiha had his arm around Sakura's waist while she leaned her head on his shoulder.

The group continued on till they were at the hill that they usually hung out on to gaze at the stars on. Fireworks still sailed and whistled into the sky, exploding into bright, attractive colors. The group all sat on the grass, admiring the light show that they were currently seeing.

They enjoyed the rest of the night being together and bringing in the New Year.

* * *

**A/N:** Um… I guess it wasn't that good… but um… please tell me what you think. And if you people are going to tell me it sucks, just tell me what I'm not doing to **_please_** you. Anyways, I worked hard on this… and this story is probably going to have the longest chapters that I have written XD 


	2. Chapter 2

Yay, Halloween is over... lol, it's BEEN over… though, hell, even Thanksgiving is over and Christmas is… well, also over… and… New (twitch…) Year's (twitch)… is over (twitch, twitch)… and I haven't updated since… I think around before Thanksgiving? Maybe I'm doing it on purpose… you know, Valentine's Day is coming up pretty soon… ten days after my birthday (ku, ku, ku)

Anyways… recap on couples since of today… or… since this chapter is put up: Naruto x Hinata, Sasuke x Sakura, Shikamaru x Temari, Kankurou x Ino, Neji x Tenten, Kakashi x Anko and that's pretty much it…

OH! I also saw one of the best thrillers EVER! (Then again, I don't really watch horror or thriller movies) It's called _'Stay Alive.'_ The only reason I got it in the first place from Block Buster was because it had Frankie Muniz and Jon Foster in it. I swear, that's the first movie I've ever heard Frankie (Swinky) cuss in XD. Ah, sweet Frankie Muniz, such a cutie XD. The girl that played October was pretty, lol. I forgot her name. Also, I got DDR SuperNOVA… it's not bad, but it's not really good either, it's mediocre. The best song on there IMO, is _'Gekkou Chou' _by Asaki.

Anyways, thanks to my sister, Hell to Haters, for suggesting to me to put some of the characters in here in first person. I always thought it might be a little fun, but the credit for making it be, goes to my sis… This chapter is dedicated to my sister, Desolated King, No Care Chakara, Elmo-X-Takumi, and all other of my fans out there (wow… I actually have those?). Loves!

For this chapter, please listen to the songs _'Everlasting Friend' _by Blue October, or _'Polaris' _by Jimmy Eat World, or _'Malchik Gay'_ by t.A.t.U, or the song _'Sanctuary' _by Utada Hikaru. Thanks.

Chapter Two 

**Chocolate and Kisses**

She gazed at the wandering clouds to pass the time by. Her navy hair being blown by each passing wind and her milky gaze tuning down to look at the ground. She knew what the day was, and truth be told… she was excited to spend the day with the person she admired most, Uzumaki Naruto.

Hyuuga Hinata placed her hands together and entwined her fingers with each other, closing her eyes as she did. She didn't know that the other girl's were there, with another girl with them know as, Temari.

"Wow, it's so nice to have you back from Suna! Though Shikamaru's not really here right now," came the voice of Sakura. Hinata opened her eyes and stepped from the tree that she was leaning against. Her white eyes looking from Ino, to Sakura, to Tenten and finally resting on the dirty blond-haired, teal-eyed girl, Temari. A smile came across her face as Hinata ran to the others and happily greeted Temari back from Suna.

"As long as he's here for the Valentine's night… I'll be fine." Temari replied to the girls of Konoha, smiling at them. Ino nodded and looked over to where the Chuunin Exams were held, wondering how it was going to turn out.

"Speaking of the Valentine's event tonight, I wonder how Tsunade-sama and Shizune-sama are going about the decorations." Ino laughed, looking at Sakura and Tenten in particular. Usually the four of them; Ino, Hinata, Sakura and Tenten; were helping with holiday preparations and decorations.

"Maybe Tsunade and the others didn't want you to help since it is for you and your dates. Surprise, maybe?…" Temari smirked and tilted her head to the side as she finished her sentence, seeing if the other girls' knew what she meant.

"Well, we'll all be able to see it when they're through with it… and the night will still be a nice one." Tenten smiled, placing her hands on her hips and looking up through the sakura petals that ebbed from the trees that the five girls stood underneath. They were both nervous and excited, though also worried about the boys since they were out on a mission and haven't been back for a couple of days. The ones that were in the village were the ones that had gone out on a mission before the recent one came up.

Shino from the Aburame clan was in the village… Chouji from the Akimichi clan was in the village… Sasuke from the Uchiha clan was in the village… Also, Gaara and Kankurou came into the village with Temari. But that was all, no one had heard from Naruto, Kiba, Neji, Shikamaru, or Lee since they left for the mission. Temari sat on the cement bench that was there and looked to the other girls, not really knowing what to say.

"What time is it?" Tenten asked, Ino shrugged and Sakura looked around, attempting to find a clock or something that would help her figure out the time, like a sun dial or something. Hinata turned and faced the north then looked at the shadows that she and her friends cast upon the grass. They were facing the towards the north-east and she turned back towards her friends.

"It's around two…" Hinata told Tenten, trying not to worry about Naruto. She couldn't help it though, she loved him and always has since the first time she saw him and saw how determined he could be and that aspired her and brought her to like him for who he was. She sighed and sat down in the grass once more, not really knowing what to do to pass the time away. Sakura was worried, though not about Sasuke since he was still in the village and didn't go with Naruto and the others on the mission that they had accepted. Naruto, Kiba, Neji, Shikamaru and Lee were her friends and she cared about them very much as any friend would do.

"Guys… sorry… but I'm going to go meet with Sasuke since he told me to meet him over in front of the Academy…" Sakura told the other girls, walking off and out of the cherry tree orchard. Hinata, Ino, Tenten and Temari stared after her then turned to each other, noticing that Sakura was being secretive. All four of them figured that it might have had to do with hers and Sasuke's relationship since her secretiveness started after the New Year's. Ino started to go after Sakura, though Tenten placed her hand on her shoulder and shook her head.

"It would be better if you left her alone for awhile…" Tenten told Ino, smiling slightly. Ino nodded in acknowledgement then relaxed, looking towards where she saw Sakura walk off to.

"I'm just worried about her… since we're really close friends…" Ino told Tenten, still worrying about Sakura and the boys both. She slowly clasped her hands together and sighed, not really knowing what to talk about anymore. Ino and Tenten looked up at Hinata and Temari averted her attention to Hinata as well to see the familiar blond-haired, blue-eyed person behind her. Hinata stared at them quizzically then began to blush, "wh-what is it?" she asked, her shyness now getting the better of her.

"Huh? Nothing!" Tenten quickly responded as Naruto quickly wrapped his arms around Hinata. The female Hyuuga jumped in surprise and struggled to get free. The other girls and Naruto started laughing at the sudden behavior and Naruto let her go. Hinata quickly turned around and beamed with joy as her eyes locked with the sapphire blue ones of Naruto. Her body was overwhelmed by her happiness of seeing Naruto again and she jumped up to embrace Naruto.

Tenten and Temari looked around, if Naruto were there, where the heck were Shikamaru and Neji? Just as soon as Temari sighed in depression of not having Shikamaru show up, she felt the familiar sensation of her body not responding to her brain as she would like it to. She was forced up from her sitting position and she was turned around to face Shikamaru.

"Didn't know you were going to surprise me like this…" Temari told Shikamaru, a smile still on her face. Shikamaru smiled back at her and replied, "it's nice to see you again, too. After all, you did spend New Year's in Suna." Shikamaru dispelled his technique and walked over to Temari, placing his arm around her shoulder and smiling at her as he did.

Tenten watched them then suddenly felt left out that Neji wasn't there. She looked away and turned from her friends to see the male Hyuuga standing in front of her. Tenten smiled happily as she realized that Neji was there. Neji walked up to Tenten slowly and them embraced her as he got near enough to do so. Tenten felt relived as she found herself in Neji's arms and lifted her own hands and placed them against the Hyuuga's chest as she slowly closed her chocolate brown eyes.

Now it was Ino's turn to feel left out all of a sudden. She didn't really have a date and no one that she really cared for anymore. Ever since Sasuke chose Sakura over her, she became a little more out of herself and did stuff more on her own without Shikamaru or Chouji there with her. She gave her friends one last smile even though they weren't paying attention to her, then walked away into the main part of Konoha.

It was Kankurou that stopped her as she passed him. Ino was surprised that it was Kankurou at first. She'd never seen him without his face painting or hood. Kankurou looked a little flushed though said what he was going to say to her… ask rather, "hey… Ino… um… listen, I know you don't really have anyone to go with to the Valentine's thing… but, do you think I could go with you?" Ino looked puzzled for the first few minutes as Kankurou awaited her answer. She opened her mouth and replied, "s-sure! I wasn't really planning on going… but if you want to go with me, yeah. I'd like to do that!" Ino's mouth cracked in a smile.

"Thanks!" Kankurou replied, beaming back at her. He was planning to go to keep an eye on his older sister, Temari to see if that Nara was going to do anything to her that wouldn't be acceptable to either himself or his younger brother, Gaara. Kankurou stuffed his hands into his pockets and gave Ino one last smile before heading off. Ino was still smiling as she made her way to her family's store. A small floral shop that sold rare and exquisite flowers for people to give to loved ones or to give patients they cared for in the hospital.

Ino leaned on the counter and checked some of the sales that her mother took care of while she was out then made her way upstairs to take a shower. She was actually glad that Kankurou had asked her. Ino was planning to go to the Valentine's event, though wasn't sure because she didn't have a date. Now she was going with Kankurou and that thought alone, made her happy.

Ino had to admit, he was pretty cute if he wasn't wearing that ridiculous hood or intimidating face paint. She walked to her bathroom and went inside, closing the door after her then taking down her ponytail. She sighed, though happily than sadly then she did earlier that day. Slowly, she took her light chain-mesh on her thighs and arms off then her sandals. She looked in the mirror in her room and laughed silently about what had happened recently. She took off her top, then her skirt and then stepped into her shower.

'_So much has happened since New Year's…'_ Ino thought as she turned on the water and stood beneath the water that poured from the showerhead. She closed her eyes and allowed the hot water to relax her muscles and the Japanese cypress scent sooth her body.

Uzumaki Naruto 

To put it simply as I embraced Hinata, I was glad to be back! After a week's long mission and missing Hinata with each brooding minute, I couldn't stand staying where I was for the mission and told everyone I was with to make the mission go a little faster. I, Uzumaki Naruto, was glad that the mission had ended before Valentine's Day. I wouldn't be able to bear another day in that desert without seeing my Hinata-chan!.

"N-Naruto-kun! It's so good to have you back!" Hinata told me, looking up at me with her beautiful, pearly eyes that shone like the moon at night. I stared back at her with a smile on my face and hugged her closer to my body. Her long, violet hair soft against my cheek and her skin smooth like butter against my hands.

"It's good to be back… with you…" I told her, closing my eyes and basking in this tender moment that we had shared so many times before since the New Year's Eve. I could feel Hinata sigh with happiness as I held her in my embrace. I wasn't the least bit embarrassed with Temari, Shikamaru, Tenten and Neji around. They've… well, except for Temari, have seen us like this so many times before this, it was basically natural.

I loosened my embrace and stood at arm's length away from her. She stared back at me with curiosity well marked in her eyes. I chucked a bit then ran my arm over her shoulders and we both made our way into Central Konoha… or… the main part of Konoha, as many others called it.

"Hinata-chan… I think that today is one of the more special days of my life…" I told Hinata truthfully, it was my first Valentine's Day with her after all and I wanted to make it last before the Valentine's event that was being held at the same place that we had our Chuunin Exams at. Hinata smiled up at me and nodded in agreement, leaning her head on my shoulder.

"Naruto-kun… I have a gift for you at my house… also for Kiba-kun and Shino-kun too…" she told me, I could understand why she would want to give a gift to Shino and Kiba. They've been with her since the beginnings of her being a ninja. Though I smiled to myself and knew that it was probably something sweet… Truth be told, I'm not too fond of sweets, I like things that have a mild taste to them, like ramen. Though if Hinata made it, I'm sure I would love it… her cooking was some of the best I've ever had in my whole life!

**Uchiha Sasuke**

I was standing in front of the Ninja Academy gates where I told Sakura I was going to t her at. It was nothing big; actually, I just wanted to hang out with her before just about everyone made his or her way to the Valentine's Dance thing. I'm not really a dancer in all aspects of the word, though I'd do my best if Sakura were to ask me…

Speaking of Sakura, here she was now… a little late, which was unusual, though she did have a small box in her hands. I look inquisitively at her as she approached me. I admired her short, rose quartz hair blowing gently in the wind and her brilliant, emerald green eyes. She looked up at me and smiled.

"Hi Sasuke-kun!" she happily said with a smile on her lips. I smiled coyly back at her and withdrew my hands from my pockets. Honestly, I was really—no, VERY new to this going out concept. I had never really cared for anyone in my life, though after New Year's, things had gotten different between Sakura and myself. I did care for her… deeply, I did… though I still wanted to avenge my clan and kill my brother. Guess I had to put that aside for now… after all… it was Valentine's Day.

Sakura held out the small box and I looked at it, "I made this for you Sasuke… um… I hope it's not bad…" I took the box from her hands and looked inside… homemade chocolate from Sakura. I smiled and looked up at her behind my obsidian black bangs.

"Thank you, Sakura…" I told her, taking a small bit of chocolate from the ends of the heart and putting it into my mouth. It had a smooth texture to it and tasted wonderfully sweet. Warm chills made their way through my body after I ate the small piece and I looked back up at Sakura, "it's the best _I've_ ever had." I told her, putting the cover back over the box and embracing Sakura in a one-armed hug. I let go of her and stepped back, looking into her radiant green eyes.

"Happy Valentine's Day…" I told her quietly, smiling slightly. Sakura smiled back at me and replied, "and happy Valentine's Day to you too, Sasuke-kun…" Sakura and I walked away from the academy, hand-in-hand, talking about ridiculous things that our team has done in the past. Especially about what Naruto has done… that idiot… though I still liked him… he's one of the only people that I consider close like a brother.

Hyuuga Neji 

Tenten and I were walking along the banks of the river, holding hands and basking in one another's company. I was glad to be back, though ashamed to be with her with cuts and bruises all over my body from the mission that was held recently. Even my shirt and pants were ripped. Tenten didn't seem like she cared, that was good… as long as she didn't really mind, I didn't.

"I don't feel like going to the event tonight…" Tenten told me, looking down at the ground as she and I walked together. I was going to tell her the same, though I'm pretty glad that she told me… I was afraid to disappoint her if I told her that I didn't want to go.

"I don't really feel like going either… the event's probably going to be full up anyway…" I replied to Tenten, giving her hand an affectionate squeeze. She looked back up at me with her luxurious, smooth, brow eyes with joyous content in them. I smiled back at her and lowered my gaze to hers. She was definitely beautiful… long brown hair that was pulled back into two buns, dark brown eyes and she had a wonderful disposition.

"Then… where would you like to go?" Tenten asked me, it snapped me out of my thoughts and I looked away from her and thought for a moment. There wasn't really any place to go to that would be romantic… anywhere we'd go would probably be taken up by someone else, so I shrugged and replied, "you choose… I can't really think of anything right now…" Tenten had a mischievous smile creep onto her face and she leaned closer to me and put her hands around me.

"Right here is fine…" she told me, smiling at me, "nice sound of the river flow… you and me, here… alone for once…" I smirked at that. It was true, anywhere Tenten and I had decided to go… we got interrupted by someone else that we knew. Lee being a main one of those people that bugged us when Tenten and myself wished to be alone.

Tenten found a thick tree and sat with her back against it and I followed after her, doing the same. She had this radiant smile on her face that just about no one could get rid of, and it was one of the many assets that I loved about her. I rested my hand upon her own and we both watched sakura petals and maple leaves fall from the trees and billow with the wind.

Nara Shikamaru 

I was finally back from my mission… how troublesome… the best part was _when_ I got back… Temari had finally come! I didn't know that she would, but it was such a relief having her here. I mean… yeah, I loved her and all, though she could be so troublesome to deal with at times.

"Temari… welcome back to Konoha…" I smiled, looking into Temari's dark greenish-blue eyes. She smiled back at me and hugged me, she backed up and reached into her pocket, fishing out a small black box with three lilac circles that resembled the same markings on her fan on it. Temari shyly gave it to me and I gladly accepted it, smiling at her as I received it from her.

"Um… it was my first time making them… hope you like them…" Temari told me, her face turning a few shades of pink. I chuckled a bit, though I leaned up to Temari and kissed her on the cheek, even though I may not be a real 'ladies man,' I could surprise them with my tactics… as so proved in the Chuunin Exams. Ah, those were the memories… The first time I met my loved one… It may have started out harsh, though we both got over it pretty quickly.

"I'm sure that they're good…" I reassured her, opening the box. The sweet smell of cocoa and sugar wafted into my nose and I took a small bit of chocolate and ate it. It was a little on the _very_ sweet side, though the aftertaste balanced it out. Overall it was pretty decent… okay, it was VERY decent. Temari looked at me with questioning eyes and I smiled back at her.

"It's good!" I told her, taking another bit of chocolate and eating it. Maybe I was a bit of a sweet tooth… but it didn't matter, probably a person who didn't even LIKE sweets would love this homemade chocolate that Temari had given me.

Temari's face had lit up as I told her that it was good, and she, came over to me and hugged me once more… then she asked a little more sternly, "you _do_ mean it, don't you?" I was a little baffled now… Didn't girls even _try_ their own chocolate before they give it to guys? I mean… it would make a heck of a lot more sense…

"Why would I lie?" I asked, smiling again. She beamed and looked a lot more happier than I've usually seen her… then again, it might be because of the chocolate. Truth be told, I've never had her cooking, though just tasting this chocolate, her other cooking should be good too. If her family had passed down recipes that were good, even better.. not that I wouldn't like something that she made as well.

Damn… now I'm even confusing myself… I sighed deeply and put my arm around Temari's waist then we both walked out of the cherry tree orchard. Her dark, golden hair gently swaying in the wind as it blew past.

"Shikamaru… I'll meet up with you later… after all, we're going to the event tonight, right? I have to get ready…" she told me, then with a laugh added, "as do you… you're filthy from your mission…"

"Gee, thanks…" I told her a little sarcastically. I waved to her as she walked to her apartment and I made my way to my house, clutching the small black box in my hands.

Hyuuga Hinata 

Naruto and I walked to my house… also known to many others, the Hyuuga Manor. I smiled as Naruto escorted my to my door. We've been like this for only a couple of months, though I feel like we've been together for years.

"I'll—I'll be right back…" I told Naruto, hurrying into my house and into my room. I had to get ready for this event. I locked my door and then pulled my sliding closet door open, stepping inside and looking for the white dress that I had bought. I found it, the lightweight silken garment hung in my closet and I pulled it out. Quickly, I got dressed and brushed my hair. After all of this was finished, I made my way into the kitchen. There were three cream colored boxes sitting on the counter, one for Naruto, one for Kiba and the last one for Shino. I may not care about those two the way I care about Naruto, but they were both my best friends… to me, it would be wrong not to give them anything on Valentine's Day.

I grabbed the one for Naruto and then made my way back outside, meeting back up with the person I cared for and admired. He was smiling and then he looked astonished as I came back. His mouth opened to say something and all that came out was, "Hinata-chan… you look absolutely beautiful!"

I blushed and walked up to him casually and held out the box to him, my face turning red with each passing second that flowed by. Naruto lowered his ocean blue gaze and looked at the box then back at me. My heart was pounding, I didn't know if Naruto-kun liked sweets or not. I was hoping with all my heart that he would though. He took the box gingerly and un-did the ribbon that I tied onto it early this morning.

I clasped my hands together softly as Naruto opened the lid to his gift. He smiled and took one of the small chocolates and put it into his mouth. I looked up curiously.

"H-how is it?" I asked, wanting to know so badly that I was sweating. Luckily for me, not that badly. Naruto-kun smiled at me and replied, "just like all your other cooking, Hinata-chan! The best I've ever had!" This lifted my spirits and I smiled more vibrantly than I was just a few seconds ago.

"Really? That's great to hear, Naruto-kun!" I said happily, looking Naruto with a smile. We both started towards the front door, hand-in-hand. We walked into the sunny, cobbled streets of Konoha and made our way towards the Inuzuka manor first for me to give him his gift. We arrived at the Inuzuka manor and Naruto's expression dropped… I know that he doesn't really like Kiba… or Shino… but… I will just be a moment with what I'm going to do.

"I'll be right back, Naruto-kun…" I told him, letting go of his hand and walking towards the door. I knocked twice and Kiba's sister, Hana, opened the door.

"I-is Kiba-kun here?" I asked, Hana shook her head then replied to me, "I can tell him that you were here though." I nodded then handed the box of chocolates to her and said, "I wanted to give this to him…" Hana took the box and placed it on a counter inside her house and smiled down at me. I started to walk away from the door, waving to Hana.

I walked back to Naruto and reached for his hand, grasping it with happiness. Naruto looked down at me and we both started to walked towards our next destination, Shino's house.

Haruno Sakura 

Sasuke and myself were walking through the cheery tree orchard watching the sakura petals fall away from the trees and onto the ground. Sasuke was looking the other direction with his hands stuffed into his pockets, not really looking all too enthusiastic. I, on the other hand, was admiring the sweet scent that emitted from the trees and the small shower of sakura petals.

"Today… is really a lovely day…" Sasuke said, looking around a bit. I looked over to him and giggled, seeing his soft side again today. I looked up once more and replied to Sasuke, "it really is… not too hot and not too cold… the sakura petals falling from the trees and the wonderful scent that's filling the air." I looked back over to Sasuke, who was looking right back at me with a smirk on his face.

"Yeah… and no Naruto to bug us…" He told me, I giggled a little more and then looked over to where the Valentine's event was going to be, wondering if Tsunade was finished with the preparations. Sasuke looked the same way I was and then told me, "maybe… if you're going… maybe you should get ready for the event tonight…" I looked over to him and then said, "oh… okay… you too, Sasuke-kun?" he nodded at this and we both walked to our homes, waving good-bye and bidding one another adieu. I walked home alone, suddenly feeling a little more cold than I was before. I walked into my house, eager to get out and meet up with Sasuke.

I walked up to my room and shut my door quietly behind me, not really thinking about what was going on around me. I just opened my closet and pulled a silken, pink colored dress from the hanger and dressed up in it, ignoring that it was a tad big. As long as it stayed on and didn't reveal anything, I was perfectly fine. Sasuke just had to see this new dress anyways!

As I was brushing my hair, I started thinking about Ino and what she would do for Valentine's. I had left before I had really gotten a chance to have asked her what she was to do for the event.

Yamanaka Ino 

Okay, I was clean, dry and I smelled wonderful. That was only the beginning, now I had to take out that blue-violet dress that I have been saving for this very day. I was so happy, finally I have been able to find a date for the dance. Kankurou… sure I wasn't all that used to him, but we've met and have seemed to have gotten along great. Now he's asked me out and we're both going to the event. The adrenaline coursed through me as I put on that dress and then brushed my hair back into a messy bun.

The frills of the dress stretched out past my knees and the sash was securely tied around my waist. I put on long white socks and then the suede, velvet shoes that I had gotten the other day with Sakura. I didn't put make up on… I thought that it may be a little over the top. Yeah, rare thing for me, huh? Anyways, I wasn't going to let anything bring me down, it was Valentine's Day and I was going to have fun, dammit!

I walked out of the house and looked to the sky. It was starting to get dark… that was good, that meant that the event was going to start at any minute now. All I had to do at this time was find my date, Kankurou and then be on our way to the Valentine's Night event. I walked the cobbled streets, not really knowing where to find Kankurou… though I didn't have to do far for him to find _me_.

"Hey, you're lookin' good for tonight…" came Kankurou's voice, I turned and smiled at the puppet user. He didn't have his face pain and he was wearing casual clothes for the evening. I was happy, I wouldn't have been if Kankurou had decided to show up in that weird looking costume of his. I giggled and replied to him, "you're not half bad yourself." He smiled at this and held out his hand to me.

"Shall we?" he asked, I giggled a little more and slipped my hand into his, actually feeling very comfortable around him. We walked together, laughing at jokes and stories about our teams that we could think of. I was actually beginning to open up to him… it just felt so natural around him and I was enjoying myself with Kankurou more than I have with any other guy that I have come across.

We arrived at the doors to the event and then walked inside. I marveled at the pink, red and white streamers that flowed around the room. Also at the shiny lettering that marked a side of the room. Balloons also dotted the ceiling in different shades of red and pink… then the colorless white balloons. Kankurou was smiling at me then said, "I think that maybe we're a bit too early." I looked around… he was right, there was no one there yet except for Kakashi, Kurenai, Iruka, Anko, Tsunade, Shizune, Pakkun and Tonton.

Uzumaki Naruto 

Hinata and I rushed to where the events were to be held and only saw that one couple had made it so far. I looked at them quizzically too… Ino and Kankurou… together? It was almost as odd as Sasuke asking Sakura for their first date… well, first! I looked over at the Jounin and the other Special Jounin that were in there. Tsunade-baa-san was the only, _really_ important person there.

Hinata looked up at me with her coy white eyes and asked, "N-Naruto-kun… perhaps we're early…" I nodded in agreement to this and looked around in the room, looking at how seriously the Hokage herself and the others had taken this.

The doors behind us opened and everyone turned and saw Sakura with Sasuke, all casual looking. Sakura looked very pretty in her pink dress, though not as good as my Hinata-chan in her absolutely gorgeous white one. I walked away from Sakura and Sasuke with Hinata by my side, looking down at her and admiring her beauty in the dimly lit room.

"Hinata-chan… I'm glad that I'm with you for this special night…" I told her, wrapping my hands around her waist. She looked up at me with a sparkle in her moon-like eyes and smiled, "and I am happy to be with you, Naruto-kun… I'm glad that you were able to come back from your mission…" I touched my forehead to hers and closed my eyes, basking in the moment that we were together. I felt her put her hands on my shoulders and then we slowly swayed back and forth with each other, ignoring everything else that was around us.

Temari 

I was ready to leave, I was dressed up in my new lilac dress and after waiting for Shikamaru to show up at my apartment and seeing Kankurou leave to go to the event with Ino, I grew impatient. I was pacing around the room, thinking that I would be late to the even with Shikamaru… that's when three taps sounded against the door and I hurried to answer it.

Shikamaru stood there with a rose in his hand, I smiled at this and walked outside with him. I was looking up to the darkened sky with Shikamaru's hand in my own, "the stars are nice…" I said, looking up at the small white speckles that dotted the velvet sky. Shikamaru looked up and smiled with me, "yeah… they sure are…" he replied, shoving his free hand into his pocket to keep it warm in the cool air. We walked past the cherry thee orchard, and even though it was still dark, the slightly wet petals gleamed under the moonlight. I thought they kind of looked like little lights that marked the tips of the branches. That's when we ran into both Neji and Tenten.

"Hey… you two aren't going to the event tonight?" Shikamaru asked, looking down to his two Konoha comrades. Neji looked up at us and then replied, "no… right here is fine for Tenten and myself." As the Hyuuga said this, he looked to the glittering river with his arm wrapped around Tenten. I looked around too, admiring the scenery here too, though I didn't really want to intrude on Neji and Tenten's spot.

"Okay then…" I started, walking forwards a little, "I guess we'll see you later…" we both walked across the bridge, not saying much after we ran into the two others in the cherry orchard. We neared the place at where the event was being held and Shikamaru opened the doors and allowed me in first.

"After you, my lady…" Shikamaru joked, bowing down. I giggled a bit at this, though pulled him inside after me. I looked around, not many people were there… maybe around thirteen couples all together. Though I could tell that Ino, Kankurou, Naruto, Hinata, Sasuke and Sakura had been here for a while now. The Hokage, herself looked a little worn down from watching the happy couples being together in that huge place. I looked around a bit more and then turned to Shikamaru, taking his hand and leading him out to where the dance was.

"T-Temari… I'm…" Shikamaru started, startled by my sudden gesture, I turned to him and put my hands on his shoulder, "not… that good at dancing…" he finished, looking at me. Gently, I felt him put his hands on my hips and we just smiled at each other and swayed with one another, not really getting too into the whole Valentine's Dance thing. Though, it was fun, we were happy in each other's company, and that's what counts!

Kankurou 

Heh, Ino isn't half bad once I got to know her more… she was fun to be around and she would understand most of the things that I'd say even when my siblings thought that it was crazy. She was nice, though her floral talk was a little unnerving. Telling me that the yellow rose means goodbye, red is love, white daffodils mean get well soon and white chrysanthemums are for people who have passed on. What I laughed at was the fact that she asked me not to get her any orange flowers because they meant hate.

"Hey, Kankurou… wanna get a drink?" Ino's voice called out to me, I looked up at her and smiled, "sure, why not?" I got up and then we both walked over to the refreshments table, talking about things that happened that we though were funny.

"… then Naruto turned into the princess herself, who I was impersonating in the same room!" she laughed, brushing her hair out of her face, I laughed at this too. Naruto turning into the princess, too? I bet that got hectic. Then I started with what I was going to say, "you know… there was this one time with Temari and Gaara… when we were younger, Gaara wanted strawberries so bad…" I paused to chuckle a bit then continued, "our sister wouldn't give him any and then he started crying and shouting stuff like, 'at least my teddy is nice to me!'" Yamanaka giggled at this and then turned her gaze down, filling two cups of juice for her and myself.

"Hey Ino… I have to admit something…" I started, looking down into her jade-green eyes. She stared back up at me, wanting to know what I was about to tell her. I opened my mouth and told her, "you know… you're the first girl that I've actually felt comfortable around… my sister doesn't count at all." I looked down at her to see her smiling back up at me.

"You know… after the night was over, I was going to basically tell you the same thing…" She told me, taking a small sip from her cup. I didn't know how to reply to this, after all, I always thought that she was infatuated with the Uchiha that was here with Sakura. Though, now I guess she recognizes that Sasuke had chosen the Haruno girl over herself.

"I-is that right? Wow… I would've never really guessed…" I said to her truthfully, almost tipping my glass over on accident. I shook away the blush that was about to work it's way across my cheeks. She turned and smiled at me, replying, "well… it looks like it was just fate then, right?" I was a little puzzled to what she meant and then it came to me.

"Um, yeah! I guess so…" I responded, fidgeting with my cup. She laughed a little bit and then replied, "well… whatever it was, I'm happy it happened!"

Valentine's Event 

Kankurou and Ino were the one's to leave first once the clock hit eleven. Some of the people stayed and hung out with their loved ones a little more than they did when it was a normal day. Sasuke and Sakura were still there… Sakura with her head leaning on the Uchiha's shoulder as his hands were wrapped around her body.

Naruto and Hinata had their heads touching at the forehead with their eyes closed, just enjoying one another's company. Naruto had his hands on her waist as the Hyuuga wrapped her arms around Naruto, feeling loved and secure around him. She was glad that she had time to spend with Naruto and the Uzumaki was feeling the same way about Hinata in that moment and time.

Temari and Shikamaru on the other hand were sitting over on a bench that was set up in the building. The sandy-blond leaning her head on Shikamaru's shoulder as they sat there. The Nara wrapped an arm around Temari as she lifted a hand to put on his chest. He nuzzled the top of her head and laughed a bit, telling her, "I'm glad you're here, Temari…" She sighed lovingly and replied a little sleepily, "and I'm glad that you're here with me…"

Cherry Orchard 

Neji stood up and held out a hand to Tenten. She took it and he helped her up from the ground. Tenten smiled at Neji as he pulled her close and closed his eyes as he embraced her. Tenten closed her eyes as well and wrapped her arms around the male Hyuuga.

They stayed like that for a good portion of time and Neji whispered in Tenten's ear, "Happy Valentine's Day…"

**A/N:** Um… I guess it wasn't that good… but um… please tell me what you think. And if you people are going to tell me it sucks, just tell me what I'm not doing to **_please_** you. I can't please everyone after all… Anyways, I worked hard on this… and this story is probably going to have the longest chapters that I have written XD.

Did you know that at least over half of the people here don't even know what A/N means? They just write it here because a lot of other people do it…


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